


Wings of Black

by kiite



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's, Yu-Gi-Oh! ARC-V
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, M/M, crow is a weird bird dude you know how it is
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-26
Updated: 2018-03-28
Packaged: 2019-04-08 08:48:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,850
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14101734
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kiite/pseuds/kiite
Summary: Shinji helps out a “bird” in a bind and ends up getting a lot more than he bargained for.





	1. First Encounter

**Author's Note:**

> here’s a SUPER WEIRD au.. Crow/Shinji tag will come in more in later chapters

Living alone in the woods, Shinji Weber was used to all kinds of rare and unusual sights. He had seen groups of deer gently move through the foliage, stepping lightly and gracefully. He had watched beautifully colored insects pass by him, unbothered by his presence. He had witnessed the blooming of flowers that only opened up at specific times, their true colors unknown to mere passerbys. But in all his years of roaming these woods, Shinji had never seen anything quite like this.

Today had started as any other; Shinji awoke at dawn and fixed himself a light breakfast. He made a mental note that he was low on supplies, and would likely have to make a trip to the nearby town before the end of the week. The trip took about two hours total, so he made it a habit of making his supplies last as long as possible. He always spent a bit of time in town when he visited though, so he had to plan around it being a three or four hour trip.

After eating, Shinji got dressed and stepped out into the crisp autumn morning. It was a little chilly as the wind stirred up some fallen leaves, but Shinji didn’t mind. He enjoyed the cold, even if it could be quite inconvenient at times. His simple, threadbare jacket did little to keep him warm, but he tugged it closer to himself nonetheless and set out on his morning walk.

The forest that Shinji resided in was very large; he had never been to every part of it. Some areas were deeply covered in thick foliage, others were days walks away from his home. While his daily path was somewhat consistent, Shinji enjoyed running across new spots and uncovering minor mysteries of the woods. He was glad that he was the only person who lived in his area, as far as he knew.

His peaceful stroll was interrupted when he heard loud noises that sounded like something crashing against the layer of dead leaves. Curious and worried, Shinji carefully made his way in the direction of the noise, trying not to be spotted by anything. As he approached a small clearing, he could see the source of the commotion. He had to fight back the urge to gasp at what he saw.

In the middle of the clearing, writhing around wildly was… something. It was large, around the size of a human. Its head and chest also looked extremely humanlike, but the resemblance ended there. Coated in iridescent black feathers, its thighs tapered off into skinny black legs ending in feet equipped with sharp talons. Sprouting from its back were two large wings, covered in the same feathers as its thighs. The wings were flapping rapidly, trying and failing to lift the creature off the ground.

Shinji could also see the reason for the creature’s plight: an old metal bear trap clamped firmly around its left leg. Where the sharp jaws of the trap bit into the hardened skin of the leg, Shinji could see blood leaking out. The wound was only worsened by the creature’s struggling, embedding the teeth deeper into its flesh. Because the trap was secured tightly to a nearby tree with a chain, the creature was unable to take flight.

Without fully realizing what he was doing, Shinji cautiously stepped out into the open. Immediately the creature froze, staring at Shinji with wide, inhuman eyes set into a rather human face. It attempted to move backwards, but was once more hindered by the trap tethering it to the ground. Shinji raised his hands in a placating gesture and started speak.

“Please wait!” he said gently, unsure if the other would even understand him. “I don’t want to hurt you. I know how to disarm that trap and remove it from your leg, if you’ll let me. May I?” He didn’t move from his spot, not wanting to startle the creature.

Shinji wasn’t entirely sure what he was expecting as far as responses went, but he felt a surge of joy when the creature inclined its head in a small but clear nod. He moved forward slowly, crouching down next to the trap. In his head he cursed all the old hunters who used to hunt here and never bothered taking their traps with them when they left. Had he seen this one earlier, Shinji would have triggered or disarmed it to prevent a situation like this.

However… Shinji had to admit that he was fascinated by what the trap had captured. He had lived in these woods for seven years, and in all that time he had never seen anything like this. As he worked on the trap, he could feel the piercing gaze of those eyes watching him intently, analyzing his every move. Shinji was certainly a bit intimidated by the intensity of the stare and the oddness of the whole situation, but he found that he wasn’t in the least bit scared.

For twenty minutes, Shinji worked in silence to disarm the trap and release the creature’s leg. At last the trap sprung open and it immediately drew its leg back, tumbling backwards a bit in the process. As it twisted around to take flight, Shinji gestured for it to wait.

“Please, wait a moment.” he coaxed, unlooping the scarf situated loosely around his neck. “Let me help stop the bleeding.” To his complete surprise, the creature stayed put, watching him carefully. Shinji gently wrapped his scarf around the injured leg before tying it into a tight knot, creating a makeshift tourniquet. “That should help a little bit, at least.” he said, smiling.

Shinji rose from the ground, brushing bits of dead leaves off his pants. As much as he wanted to stick around and observe, it seemed rude and awkward to hang around any longer than was needed. He turned around and started to move back the way he came when a quiet voice stopped him in his tracks.

“T...thanks.” Shinji turned back around to look at the creature, wide-eyed. It was looking down at the ground, and upon noticing Shinji’s staring, it beat its wings rapidly and took flight. Shinji watched until it was out of sight, his heart beating oddly fast.

Well. That had certainly been rare and unusual.


	2. Aftermath

As soon as Crow stumbled back into his domain, he collapsed in a heap of feathers and anxiety. The sturdy nest of branches lined with pine needles was comfortable and felt like home as he caught his breath.

Crow’s home was hidden deeply within the forest, where no one dared to venture. The thick foliage protected it from outside view, and the large number of crows stationed around the area prevented intrusion. This was part of the reason Crow had never encountered a human, until today.

He scanned the nest and realized that the great blue heron and the golden eagle nested on opposite sides of his living quarters were absent; they had definitely been there when he came in. _Shit_ , he thought to himself. There was no doubt in his mind that they were on their way to inform Yuusei and Jack of the sorry state of their brother.

Crow pulled himself up and examined his leg. The light blue scarf was stained dark red where it was soaked through with his blood. He gingerly touched the bloody spot and cried out at the sudden burst of pain, drawing his hand back. It might be hard for him to walk for a while, Crow lamented.

Within the hour, both the heron and the eagle returned. Crow glared daggers at them, but neither acknowledged his annoyance at them. Crow crossed his arms and pouted, still seated in his nest. All he could do now was wait for his brothers to arrive and ream him out for his recklessness.

Jack arrived first, much to Crow’s displeasure. Crow knew that as the youngest, both his brothers were always trying to protect him from danger. In Yuusei, this manifested as gentle lecturing and stoic protectiveness. In Jack, this manifested as harsh scolding and heated words. Crow would much rather speak to Yuusei first, but he had no such luck.

Jack was, in every aspect, very large. He was more than a head taller than Crow, with large, imposing golden-brown wings that blocked out the sun when he spread them. His sharp talons were much larger and more intimidating than Crow’s; Yuusei had been on the receiving end of them once, and had been left badly scarred.

The moment Jack alighted in his nest, Crow knew he was in trouble. Jack’s sharp gaze bore into Crow, who looked away instinctively, trying to avoid meeting his eyes. Taking heavy, intimidating steps towards his younger brother, Jack closed his hand around Crow’s throat and pulled him upwards, startling the smaller man. Crow squawked, putting both his hands on Jack’s arm in an attempt to free himself.

“What. Did. You. Do.” Jack asked, his voice low and dangerous. The question was asked as more of an accusation, and Crow tried to shrink himself down, pulling his head and limbs closer to his body. “You couldn’t have gotten an injury like this in your own domain.” Jack said, gesturing with his free hand to Crow’s leg. “What the hell were you doing, idiot?”

Just as Crow was about to answer, a quiet but stern voice spoke from behind Jack. “Put him down, Jack.” Yuusei said with a sigh, walking over to join them. Jack, begrudgingly, released Crow, who fell to the floor of the nest with a soft thud. Yuusei kneeled next to Crow, helping him sit up before turning his attention to the wounded leg. He turned his gentle and questioning gaze back to Crow, who began to speak without even being prompted.

“I, uh… I left my domain.” Crow said, looking ashamed. “I was really curious about the rest of the woods, and I wanted to explore for just a little bit. I was gonna come right back, but… I got my leg caught in some kind of trap, and I couldn’t fly away. And then, a human came along, and-”

“You got fucking caught by a human?!” Jack shouted, his wings spread wide and angled towards Crow. Yuusei put a warning hand on Jack’s arm, which the latter shook off violently. “Why do you think we tell you not to leave your domain? You’re not strong enough to fight a human, and if you had-”

Crow, suddenly overcome with anger, raised his voice in response. “It helped me! The human is the one who freed me from the trap. It also bandaged my leg and stopped the bleeding! If that human hadn’t come along, I might still be stuck there…” He trailed off, suddenly feeling slightly embarrassed by his passionate defense of the human he had met so briefly.

Jack clenched his fist, looking like he wanted to grab Crow again but not enough to fight with Yuusei. “Who the hell do you think set that trap in the first place, Crow? Probably not the same human, but a human nonetheless. Just because you got lucky this time doesn’t mean you weren’t in danger. What if you had been captured, or _killed?_ ” Jack looked away, staring through the thick foliage of the massive tree that surrounded Crow’s nest. “I just… I don’t want another Kiryuu incident.” He added the last words quietly, almost hesitantly.

Yuusei and Crow both froze at the mention of their old friend. Yuusei, clearly upset but saying nothing, moved to undo Crow’s bandage so that he could examine the wound. “He’s right, you know.” Yuusei said softly, not looking at Crow’s face. “We just- we don’t want anything to happen to you. You’re our brother, and we love you.” He untied the scarf and set it to the side, inspecting the damage. “It’s not too deep. It should heal on its own in a few days, maybe a week. Though I don’t recommend walking anywhere while it does.” Yuusei looked up at him again, his eyes caring. “Do you want me to stay here until it’s healed?”

Crow shook his head. “Naw, that’s ok. Thanks for the offer, though.” He felt Jack glaring at him and turned to face him. “I’m not planning on leaving again, if that’s what you’re thinking. You’re leaving your emissaries here anyway,” he said, gesturing to the heron and eagle who observed silently, “so it’s not like I can go anywhere without you guys knowing. I’d be a fool to try to sneak out when you’d know within half an hour.”

“If it was that easy to stop you from being a fool, we would have done it long ago.” Jack muttered, his tone playful for the first time since he had arrived. Crow frowned and pouted, but he had an air of playfulness around him as well, thankful for the newfound levity. They bantered with each other for a little while, Yuusei occasionally joining in to tease both parties, before Jack and Yuusei said their goodbyes and headed back to their respective domains.

Alone in his nest, or as alone as he could be with the ever watchful eyes of the heron and eagle, Crow laid on his back and watched the clouds drift across the midday sky through the patches in the leaves. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the bloodied scarf laying discarded on the floor of the nest. _I want to see the human again_ , Crow resolved. _But until I can sneak out again, I’ll have to settle for something more doable._


	3. Gifts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> short chapter! Next one will be more interesting :^)

About a week had passed since Shinji’s strange encounter, and he had started to notice an odd new addition to his routine. Every morning when he woke up, Shinji would find a few small items lining his windowsill. It was a wide variety; acorns, colorful flowers, shiny stones, berries, and other miscellaneous bits and pieces.

The first day, Shinji brushed them off the windowsill, assuming that they had been mistakenly left behind by some small animal. Forgoing his morning walk, Shinji instead began his trip to town to get supplies. Upon returning three hours later, he found more small gifts piled on the windowsill, and ten or so crows perched together in a nearby tree, watching him carefully.

Shinji, responding to the odd instinct of not wanting to offend the crows, brought the items inside. He arranged them on his table, displaying them to the crows outside. The birds cawed and took flight, scattering. In the wake of this strange exchange, Shinji was left confused, but strangely happy.

Every day he would awake to these offerings, and every day he would add them to the collection. During his morning walks Shinji found himself unconsciously visiting the clearing again, hoping to see the creature. The only sign of what had happened were a few stray black feathers and some spots of blood that were easy to miss. Shinji hoped that it was doing okay, wherever it was.

Today, the new routine was disrupted. When Shinji walked out of his bedroom, he nearly jumped backwards upon seeing the window. Perched on the windowsill was the creature, hunched over a bit so that it could fit in the frame. When it spotted Shinji, its eyes lit up and it smiled.

“Hey! It’s you!” It leaned forward, gripping the windowsill with taloned feet. “I wanted to see you again, so I came and found you!” Its smile was wide and genuine, and Shinji found himself frozen where he stood. The creature’s voice was very human, but with just a note of something else, something primal; Shinji was drawn to it.

“You, uh… Would you like to come in?” Shinji asked weakly, not knowing what to do. The creature jumped in, and Shinji winced a bit as he watched its talons stick into the wooden floor. It pulled them free, unfazed and still smiling. Now they stood in a strange silence, and Shinji decided that he would have to be the one to break it.

“We weren’t properly introduced last time. My name is Shinji Weber.” He said, extending a hand. The other only stared down at his hand, tilting its head slightly in confusion. It occurred to Shinji too late that this being likely had very little knowledge of human culture, and probably didn’t understand the prompting for a handshake; but he would feel embarrassed pulling it back now.

“Oh. It’s, um- It’s a handshake. You just put out your opposite hand and grab mine, and then we shake.” Curiously, it slowly extended its right hand and grabbed Shinji’s, careful not to scrape him with its sharp claws. They shook and Shinji pulled his hand back, feeling a little weird about the whole situation. He cleared his throat quietly. “Do you have… a name?”

The creature looked up at him again, starring with its brown and black eyes. After a moment, it replied, “Crow. My name’s Crow.” Shinji smiled warmly.

“Nice to meet you, Crow.”


End file.
